David watched his five-year-old daughter, Zara, carefully place a N100 note into the little Kolo he gifted her two years ago. The wooden box was almost full, and Zara was beaming with pride.
“Look, Daddy! My Kolo is getting full!” she exclaimed.
David smiled, remembering his own childhood attempts at saving. His father had given him a wooden box where he’d store coins from errands and birthday gifts. That box had eventually helped pay for his first Semester at university; a memory that still filled him with gratitude.
“Zara, I think your Kolo needs an upgrade,” David said, picking up his phone. “How about we open you a real bank account?”
“Like yours? With a card and everything?” Zara’s eyes widened.
“Even better. It will be yours, but I’ll help you manage it until you’re older.”
The First Deposit
The following Thursday when she was on her mid-term-break, David and Zara walked into Sterling Bank. The friendly customer service representative, Mrs. Adeyemi, greeted them with a warm smile.
“We’d like to open an ICanSave account for my daughter,” David explained.
“Excellent choice,” Mrs. Adeyemi replied, turning to Zara. “This account is special because it grows your money while you wait to become a big girl.”
As Mrs. Adeyemi explained the features, David was impressed by the 8.25% interest rate and the minimum opening balance of just N2000. He had brought N5000, Zara’s piggy bank savings plus a little extra to start her off right.
“And when she turns 18, the account becomes fully hers?” David asked.
“Exactly,” Mrs. Adeyemi confirmed. “Many parents use this as a way to build a university fund or a startup capital for their children’s future.”
Birthday with a Difference
Over the next few years, the ICanSave account became a family tradition. On each birthday, instead of just toys, Zara would receive contributions to her account from family members. David set up a standing order to automatically transfer N5000 monthly into her account.
A Look into OneBank
By the time Zara turned thirteen, she had become curious about her savings. David decided it was time for her first lesson in financial management.
“Sterling Bank has a mobile app where we can check your balance ,” he explained, showing her how to navigate the OneBank App.
“See how your money has grown over time?”
Zara was amazed to see that her account had accumulated significantly more than what had been deposited, thanks to the compound interest.
“That’s my money doing work while I sleep?” she asked incredulously.
“Exactly. That’s the power of interest and consistent saving,” David explained. ”
Zara at 18
On Zara’s eighteenth birthday, they returned to Sterling Bank, this time to transfer the account fully into her name. Mrs. Adeyemi, now the branch manager, remembered them.
“Congratulations, Zara. Your account is now officially yours,” she said, handing over a new debit card. “Your father’s foresight and your patience have paid off.”
David watched as Zara received her first adult bank statement. What had started as a replacement for a Kolo had grown into substantial savings that would cover her university education and provide a solid foundation for her adult life.
“Dad, thank you for teaching me this,” Zara said, her eyes glistening. “I never understood when I was little, but now I see what you were building for me.”
“No,” David corrected her. “What we were building together.”
